GENERAL ITEMS.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXV, Issue 28, 28 December 1917, Page 3

GENERAL ITEMS.

ITp to date Hastings residents have subscribed £20,468 to tile varioiG ! funds under the jurisdiction of the Hawke’s Bay War Relief' Association. “No one will begrudge Victorian colliery workers an increase in thenwages,” says the Age, “but every successful of this kind isi passed on to the with compound interest, and in the long run no one benefits but the employer.” ;

According to the Dutch newspaper Nieuwe Rottcrdamsche Couralit, there are now “drinkers” as well as foodless davs in Germany. An innkeeper

at Cologne, .who had, on a prohibited day, served a thirsty wnyfarmer with • a glass of was fired 300 marks (£ls). The thirsty person got off with a fine of six marks.

At tlie close of Dr. Bedford’s lecture on “Race Building” in Wellington, the statement was made that the Blanket nursing system had done wonderful work/in the community, and he ventured to say that it had saved more lives than had been lost to New Zealand during the war. He also stated that the kindergartens were doing immense good in saving! the children.

A statement made in Dunedin the other day that Otago had contributed more than any other province to the -Belgian Relief Fund is (says the Press) challenged in Christchurch, where it is pointed out that Canterbury easily headed the whole of the provinces, Otago coming second with £30,000 less than Canterbury.

According to the newspaper The Car, New Zealand experiments show that the resin of kauri pine yields 20 to 30 gallons of crude oil per ton. The unfortunate part of this business, adds a writer in the Commercial Vehicle (New York) is that you cannot have the kauri pine and the oil too.

A witness before the First Military Service Board expressed the view that motor cars were more essential in the country than in the towns (says the New Zealand Herald). He gave as a reason that, owing to the shortage of paid labour, farmers had to do more work themselves, and, consequently, to save time when transacting business away from the farm, they had to keep a motor car or a light vehicle.

The question of the Government taking over the control of the main arterial roads was'brought before the Prime Minister by a farmers’ deputation at MokriuSville. Mr Massey said that personally he was in favour of the Government assuming control of the main roads, but it was doubtful whether Parliament would agree to such a step, especially during the war 'period, r; He reminded the deputation, that many local bodies in the southern part of the North Island were opposed to the proposal ,and that they had made strong representations on the subject on previous occasions when the project was mooted.

The following official announcement has been issued by the Ministry of Food; “Persons shopping are reminded that it is more than ever necessary for them to save labour and petrol by carrying home all light parcels up to 71b in weight, in spite of the fact that tradesmen may express their willingness to deliver. In the Unitea States ,although the problems of war’ economy are new, there is already very keen attention to this matter. In a proclamation issued by the Governor of New York State, shoppers are advised that they can be patriotic in several ways. They can carry home parcels whenever possible, accept less prompt deliveries of heavier parcels without complaint, avoid having goods sent home at all unless they are sure to be kept, and take back to the shop such goods as are portable when return of them cannot be avoided. (Both the stores and the publio must do their duty to the country. There should be no need to emphasise an appeal of this nature here in the piresent state of the war.

Strong objection has been expressed by the St. Kilda Council (Melbourne) to the scantiness of apparel worn by women at a fancy dress ball recently held in the St. Kilda Town Hall. Councillor Love (according to the Argus report) said the charge was small, and the dress meagre. Were some of the women to appear in the street in the apparel they wore in the hall they would be arrested. He would not care to sally forth into the street in ids pyjamas, but some of the women folk paraded in the ball in less decent dress than pyjamas. He had seen them in a garb that would shock the modesty in any decent man. Councillor Hewison boro out the remarks of Councillor Love. At one ball two elderly ladies deemed it advisable tp suggest to some of the girl dancers, to go home and change their attire. Since that ball things had been going from bad to worse. He thought they had a right to expect some sense or decency to be observed inside the Town Hall as well as outside of it. They wore trying to fight immorality on their beaches, but within their own Town Hall they found a suggestivouess in the dress of some of the women that was demoralising. It was disgraceful .and should it he repeated next winter some action would have to be taken. Councillor Clarke said that some people would say it was a “moderation.” All lie could say

in reply was more the pity it was so. It was a east' of sus&estiveness without limitation. The women seemed to vie with each other— not in how .much they could put on, hut in how much they could take off.